In partnership with the local chapter of the NAACP, Fort Concho National Historic Landmark is celebrating Buffalo Soldier Heritage Day from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23, in the fort’s Commissary Building, East Avenue C near Henry O. Flipper and Burgess streets.
The program is free and open to the public.
Fort Concho Curator of History Cory Robinson will speak about items of original clothing and equipment used by the Buffalo Soldiers at Fort Concho and other forts across the western frontier in the post-Civil War era. Taken from the site’s recently-acquired McChristian Collection, these items are part of one of the best collections of its kind in the nation.
Jeremy Walker, Fairmount Cemetery manager, will cover the cemetery's history as well as the history of several Fort Concho Buffalo Soldiers who are buried there.
The program will include refreshments and entertainment. A short video on a World War II-era Buffalo Soldier will be shown.
These troops received the nickname “buffalo soldiers” from the Great Plains Indians who equated their dark hair to that of their sacred buffalo. Over time, the soldiers took this as a compliment.
According to Fort Concho Museum board vice president and NAACP Chapter President Sherley Spears, this day celebrates a group of soldiers who played a vital part in the development of both Fort Concho and San Angelo.
Site manager Bob Bluthardt noted that “in the fort’s twenty-two year active history the Buffalo Soldiers were stationed here for sixteen years and overall represented half of the soldiers assigned here.”
For more information, call Fort Concho at 325-481-2646 or visit fortconcho.com.
